Mathieu Bellamont looked across the grey-brown table at the blonde and felt a confusion of feelings. The assassin really couldn't be quite sure which was the best one to focus on- guilt, sorrow, or attraction...the latter seemed most dangerous. It had been so long though since he had felt the warmth of a body beside him without it turning cold and stiff as death set in. He missed Maria, frankly he missed having any kind of companionship in this madness.

Sera looked away from Mathieu's probing grey gaze and instead turned her attention to the view. Just past the turrets of the city walls was a glimpse of the Jerall mountains, usually concealed behind low hanging fog tonight they were exposed, to the light of Secunda and Masser. They were a mixture of dark deep greens from pine trees, greys and dark browns from the hard earth of the mountainside and a generous soft white from the snow that under the moons was bathed in red and silver. It was a beautiful sight despite being partially obscured by the high city walls. Jerall View was a very misleading name for the inn, only one balcony side offered any kind view of the mountains after all.

It was a typical cold, frosty evening in Bruma but neither Sera nor Mathieu minded, both were dressed appropriately for it after all, netting The Northern Winds a handsome profit as they had been forced to make purchases of winter clothing from there. Neither assassin had planned for a long stay in the city after all and yet it had already been two weeks.

Mathieu had expected Sera to depart soon after Lucien and disappear to the wilds of Cyrodiil once more. So when word had come that he needed to find her and arrange a meeting he had been most surprised to find her still in residence with the Burd family.

Sera turned back to Mathieu curiously, her gloved hands encircling the hot cup of coffee before her. She breathed across it softly and took a sip. Mathieu had offered her supper along with the generous view but she had yet to touch the modest spread of buttered corn bread, lightly cooked ham, cheese slices and creamy porridge. She was nervous, Mathieu had come to the Burd household to politely request her presence at the inn. He had hinted she was to meet another there but had said no more. Sera assumed it would be Lucien and she wondered at the news.

It was typical timing, for two weeks Sera had lingered in Bruma reluctant to part from Fenrick Burd, determined to find out if he was Thomas or not and now Fenrick was preparing to go to the Imperial City. Matthias had offered to go with him as he needed to return too. Naturally Sera was prepared to join the pair and they were all planning on leaving tomorrow.

In the two weeks Sera had learned that Fenrick had been adopted by Alarik Burd at a young age but had no memory of a life before Alarik. Fenrick had murmured, at Sera's probing, that Alarik had found him when he had journeyed with the countess of Bruma to Anvil to visit the count, finding Fenrick alone and without his memory in the wilderness. Alarik had commented that it was around the same time the count of Anvil had vanished and that he had considered the entire thing ominous but could find no connection. Sera had considered this proof that Fenrick was indeed Thomas but she had found herself unable to voice her thoughts as it meant admitting who she really was, the lost daughter of Kvatch- Alexandra. Sera knew the moment she made the news public even just to Thomas that it would ensure she and he would both be in danger and with the Dark Brotherhood always so close to her she just couldn't do it.

Sera opened her mouth to ask Mathieu when their companion might be arriving when she sensed the door opening. It was the only door that led out to the balcony and was just to their left and a couple of feet back from their table. Sera would have expected a maid but whoever opened the door took a care to do it softly and slowly. The blonde watched in horror as instead of Lucien another robed figure arrived and revealed itself to be the vampire Vicente.

The Imperial vampire regarded Mathieu and Sera curiously before halting at the side of the table between them putting his back to the balcony.

Mathieu resisted the urge to scowl up at the vampire and instead looked uncomfortably at the floor before he realised the man was expecting a greeting. Matheiu shuffled to his feet reluctantly and offered the vampie a watery smile from beneath his brown cowl. "Greetings Vicente, I did not realise it was you we were expecting."

"I know," Vicente answered softly. "I had to take several precautions lest my news leak to the wrong people."

"Wrong people? What news?" Mathieu pried. He sensed that something was amiss, the normally calm vampire seemed uneasy despite his best efforts to hide it. Mathieu knew unease all too well as he had made a habit of inflicting it upon people for as long as he could.

Vicente looked down at Sera tranquilly. The blonde tried very hard not to flinch under his stare though she resisted meeting it. "I had a dream concerning you Sera," he addressed her in a voice that he meant to sound smooth but came out as frosty. "The Night Mother came to me with a message. She said Lucien was in danger and that only you could help him. She said he found trouble with the flesh eaters and that as it was your business no one else but you was to go to his aid."

Mathieu felt a sharp prickle of energy rush through him at the news and was certain his heart skipped a beat. At first he was excited to hear that Lucien was in danger but then dismay and anger quickly tore through the excitement as he realised it was not by his hand and that there was a very real chance of his chance for revenge being stolen away.

"Flesh eaters?" Mathieu hissed out. "Then he found them." How long would they give him? Why in Oblivion had the Night Mother bothered to tell Vicente about it? Was she toying with them cruel bitch that she was or was there hope to save him?

'Why save him if he blundered into this mess?' Mathieu wondered. 'Does he not deserve to die for his failures? Oh mother what a conflict, he deserves to die certainly but it must be by my hand mustn't it? You wouldn't accept less would you? Should you?'

"So I'm here delivering her message," Vicente continued to Sera. "She said you have to find the city where the dead still live and go to the home of the goblin witch."

Sera filled with the same clash of emotions as Mathieu. Like him she felt this was the news she had wanted to hear and yet, just like him, she could not be happy about it. 'I asked him to find them and so he did, if he dies it's my fault. He probably deserves death for all his crimes but how can I complain about his lack of right to be judge, jury and executioner and then think to be the same for him? Am I really being his executioner if I simply leave him to his fate though? But then Aldrin gets away and Heriah and Indyk will never be avenged.' She shuddered as she recalled Heriah's slow and gory fate. No one deserved a death like that, not even Lucien.

"The city where the dead still live, where is that?" Sera pondered aloud. She pushed her plate of food to the centre of the table suddenly feeling nauseous at the sight of it.

"Skingrad," Vicente admitted gravely. "She means vampires, I could explain but it makes no difference, it's Skingrad."

"And the home of the goblin witch?"

Vicente shook his head with uncertainty. "I'm afraid I don't know the answer to that one, hopefully you can find that answer in Skingrad." He looked down at the blonde curiously. "You have always seemed to hold a hatred for Lucien in you, why would you go for him?"

Sera sighed and frowned up at the vampire. "What do you care so long as I go?" she retorted defensively.

"I care that you go to help him not to witness his fate," Lucien retorted icily.

"He and I have unfinished business," Sera confessed stiffly, "I would see that he is safe to conclude it. Does that suffice?"

This time Vicente sighed. "No but the Night Mother did say you would help him, she called it a delightful twist in the web, whatever that means." He looked at Sera closely trying to spy a hint of her face that might betray she knew more about his dream than she was showing. As it was the blonde kept her face perfectly blank.

"I suppose I should head for Skingrad then," the blonde remarked miserably. Had it really been too much to hope that she might make it to the Imperial City with Matthias and Fenrick? She swallowed hard, uncertain how she should say goodbye to them, especially Matthias. She was always darting off from the Breton with little notice and every time they met it seemed to be under grim circumstances.

"As soon as you can please," Vicente implored her.

Sera stood up from the table and took a step away from the vampire, to her he was still very much a monster. "I have to say goodbye to my friends, then I'll go." She looked uneasily at the night and hugged her scarf closer about her neck. "Although travelling at night seems unwise."

"It is," Mathieu murmured. "Do take a care on the roads sister."

Sera blinked down at him in surprise, he had never addressed her with such familiarity before. Mathieu looked up at her in equal surprise and in the shadows of his cowl his cheeks turned a rosy pink.

"I will," Sera retorted softly. She headed for the door without a farewell for Vicente, cursing him inwardly for bringing her such terrible news.

The blonde headed back to the Burd household slowly, reluctant to make her farewells and begin a grim journey after Lucien and the cannibals. She felt nervous but determined too, she was afraid to face the cannibals again but she was eager to see Aldrin dead. She wondered what she should say to Matthias and Fenrick, it was unlikely they were going to let her leave late at night without a fight.

She knocked the heavy oak door to the Burd home and tensed when the maid opened it to grant her entry. The house was so warm and inviting and she could hear singing coming from the parlour. She knew it was some of the guards who had come to share a drink with their captain and his son.

Sera paused in the hallway and looked helplessly to the open doorway where the sound carried out from. She could hear the crackle of flames and see the inviting glow of the fire and the candles that burned within. She could just about smell the beeswax that burned, barely detectable over the odour of mead and cooked meat.

The blonde stepped up to the doorway and looked in. One guard strummed a lyre and another played a lute instantly putting her in mind of poor Indyk. Sera clenched her fists tightly as her fears lessened as she reminded herself why she was doing this- for Indyk, Heriah and all the others who had perished in such a cruel and horrid manner. She caught Matthias curious, grey stare and found herself stepping back from the happy scene.

As expected Matthias rose and followed after the blonde, chasing her at a walk to the shadows of an unoccupied part of the hall. There he caught her gently by the shoulder and turned her to face him. "What's wrong?" He could see the worry on her face and he knew that something had happened.

"I have to go," Sera confessed quietly, "but not to the Imperial City, not yet. I have business in Skingrad."

"What business?"

"Thieves Guild business," Sera lied. "I'm sorry, I can't say any more than that it's against the rules."

Matthias frowned and studied her face trying to spy the lie but he couldn't. "For how long?" he queried.

"I'm not sure," she admitted, "not long hopefully."

"And will you come to the Imperial City after?"

She nodded. "I will."

"Alright, I'll see you there then."

"I'm going tonight," she admitted.

Matthias' gaze turned stern and his grip on her shoulder tightened slightly. "Why? Those roads are dangerous, why can't you wait until morning?"

"Time is of the essence," she retorted sincerely.

"It can't be that bad," he argued.

"It is, believe me." Sera gave him a serious stare willing him to believe her. She was touched to see the concern in his eyes and felt guilty for it. 'When did he come to care for me?' she wondered. 'The thief who was always a thorn in the side of his master. Why does he care? Shit Matthias how long have you noticed me and I have failed to notice you?'

She leaned up and startled them both by pressing her lips against his. She knew it was unfair, the gesture was as much a distraction as it was a sincere show of her growing feelings for the man. She knew it would disarm him when her words couldn't and make him cease his protests and arguments.

Matthias gripped her other shoulder too and tugged her closer as he leaned into the kiss and responded. How long had he thought about this? Since that first time he had spied her all those months ago fleeing from Umbacano's house one early evening pursued by a frustrated Surius. Matthias remembered it well, he had been on the streets heading for the Bloated Float with Collatinus when he had heard Surius' curses and pants. He had glanced to the rooftops to see the source of Surius' anger- a beautiful Imperial with her long, blonde hair flowing free behind her in the wind as she sprinted along the rooftops with ease and a wide smile as if the chase were all a great game. Ever since that day Matthias had been determined to find out her identity, pretending to everyone that his only interest in her was seeing her brought to justice for robbing his master.

Sera pulled back with reluctance, surprised by how good the kiss had felt. She had tasted sweet mead on Matthias' lips but there had been something else too, a cooler taste that seemed to be Matthias and nothing else.

"I have to go now," Sera addressed him softly with a small smile, "but when I see you in the city I'll make the kiss longer."

Matthias smiled back at her before letting his hands slip away slowly from her shoulders. "Alright," he gave in, "but don't take long."

"I won't. Will you tell Fenrick farewell for me?"

Matthias nodded in reassurance.

"Thanks, I'll see you soon." Sera turned away from the Breton and hastened back to the front door. She did not glance back knowing it would only cause an unnecessary delay if she did. Her next stop would be the stables to see if she could steal a horse without too much hassle. Hopefully the Night Mother wouldn't count a horse as being against her word that only Sera should go after Lucien. What was that about anyway? Did she think only Sera could save him? Surely she was the least experienced member of the Dark Brotherhood and the least loyal. Maybe that was it, it was a test of her loyalty to the group and to Lucien or maybe it was just game. Sera thought of Mephala and her constant toying with Sera in her mind and she wondered not for the first time if she and the Night Mother were simply different aspects of one another.

Sera looked to the cave with unease. She could smell the rot and decay wafting out from within and see the blanched bones half-buried at its entrance. It made her horse skittish which was she had tied its reins tightly to a tree to ensure it didn't leave out of fright in her absence. Her only indication that she was at the right cave was the sloppily painted gold crescent with a hand print under it which stained the left side of the entrance.

Sera didn't know how many days had passed since Vicente had come to Bruma with news of Lucien, it felt like weeks but she doubted it was so long. It had taken her many hours to reach Skingrad even with a horse to take her there. There had been near misses with demons escaped from Oblivion gates, battles with wolves, boars and even a bear. Sera had had to flee from the bear and was grateful she had stolen a fast mount who was able to spirit her away from it. It was easy to forget the alleged impending doom of the world when she had cannibals and assassins to contend with but the attack of winged sprites that hurled fire at her and four legged beasts that charged at her with hardened shield like skulls were a sharp reminder to Sera of the Oblivion gates and the crisis they brought to Cyrodiil. She wondered at Fenrick's role in it all, the hero of Kvatch, as his father had eventually learned he was called, though Fenrick seemed embarrassed by the moniker and was quick to downplay it. He would not speak of Martin or the Blades but Sera, Matthias and Alarik all knew that whatever business took Fenrick to the Imperial City was theirs. Sera hoped that whatever the business was it wouldn't endanger Fenrick too much and that he would at least keep himself safe until she could see him again.

In Skingrad Sera had struggled to find clues about the goblin witch until one kind resident had suggested she speak with the Fighters Guild as its members were bound to know about nearby goblin nests if anyone did. It was within the guild that she met Fadus Calidius, an Imperial warrior who had a special hatred for goblins and as such had taken extra care to learn of their nearby haunts so he could hunt them. He had told her about a Goblin Jim, shaman to the White Skin Goblin tribe who lived north of Skingrad. What Fadus had found interesting were the rumours that Jim was not a goblin but in fact a human and thus potentially a witch, warlock, wizard or mage depending on the preferred term. Assured that there were no other nearby goblin dens with shamans present Sera had decided Goblin Jim's cave must then be her intended destination.

Now here she was, alone and in the drizzle of a late grey morning preparing for battle with goblins, cannibals and a shaman. She had bought new clothes, opting for brown leathers over armour as it reminded her of her preferred Thieves Guild armour and she found it easier to move in. After picking a few pockets she had gathered enough coin to purchase a pair of twin daggers and an ebony short sword. Oh sure a magically imbued weapon would have been handy but Sera had spied only a couple and didn't think they were worth the effort trying to steal them. Mages were too well known for their magically enhanced traps upon their property.

Sera sucked in a final breath before treading into darkness and death. As expected the cave smelled stale with the rusty stench of dried blood and the sickening odour of rotting flesh. She moved low and slow, waiting impatiently for her eyes to adjust to the gloom. Experience meant Sera only needed a minimal light source to see and thanks to glowing mushrooms and a few low lit torches she had it.

Sera crept through numerous tunnels and caverns for hours, striking out at the goblins she spied with an element of surprise. She attacked from the shadows, moving quick to cut jugulars before screams could be uttered. A couple of times she had to go for deep blows to the gut, cutting through the only gap between the goblins' armour. Three times she was almost overwhelmed as they brought numbers with their war cries and pained squeals. The assassin's bloodlust and the thief's knack for survival served her then well and she used her instinct and skills to undo their advantage of numbers. While they relied on brute strength she had stealth and speed at her disposal and was able to dodge their clumsy blows and strike back swiftly.

As she moved deeper and deeper into the maze of caverns the pile of bones and corpses became thicker and soon fresher. Eventually, she made it to the heart of the goblin den and found herself on a stony edge looking down at a grizzly scene.

Below there was a large chamber lit up with several torches burning in stone scones on the walls. At its centre was a pen of sharp wooden spikes inside which were several bodies. Well, Sera thought they were bodies until a few started to move and she became aware of the groans of despair and pain. There was also a table to the right, long and soaked in blood and littered with the remains of limbs chewed to the bone. An alchemy station stood in one corner and beside it were more bodies and two half-naked trembling figures who were chained to a wall and looking up to the man at the station fearfully.

Sera's eyes watered as the odour of rot irritated at them and she had to rub them twice to clear them. She lay on the ground as flat as she could manage, glad that torchlight did not reach her height. She looked impatiently for Lucien, confident that he was not amongst the imprisoned in the pen. At first she missed him, unaccustomed to seeing him not only without his sable robes but without any clothes at all. She looked back to him in shock, doing a double take as she realised that yes indeed that was the proud assassin now bound and gagged and at the mercy of three figures wearing robes Sera was all too familiar with. With a scowl she watched the figures as she wondered which of them might be Aldrin.

"What do you think the Brotherhood tastes of?" a female's voice queried crudely from the trio.

"Of death and deceit," came a male's answer. Sera tensed, certain the voice was Aldrin's. "Hmm this one's flesh looks tough though, aged and injured."

"Do not fret Nirdla if Niam Esruoc disappoints we can find a good Tressed."

'Not again, by the Aedra not again,' Sera thought anxiously as she clenched her fingers into the ground and shut her eyes tightly. She didn't know what to do, she didn't even know how she had beaten them last time. Black worms and red skulls, she shuddered at the thought and knew she didn't want whatever aid that had been again. Damn it why wasn't she an archer? Hadn't Methredhel always urged her to learn the skill, pointing out so many times how handy it was for stealth and distant kills? Sera cursed herself for ignoring her friend and sticking to her daggers for defence. 'And death,' she realised numbly. 'My first kill was with a dagger. I need to find a way down there, get a better view and a chance for a stealth attack.'

Sera crawled back from the edge with a few winces as the sharper rocks dug into her flesh through the leather. At a low crouch she crept down a tunnel before finding one that had a roof so low she had to crawl through it. After creeping down several paths to dead ends she eventually got her bearings and found her way back to the large cavern. This time she emerged at ground level behind a cluster of rocks close to the alchemy table.

Sera guessed that the man attending to the alchemy had to be the shaman. He looked like a Breton, armed with an iron sword hanging at his side from a rope fastened about his sackcloth pants. He wore only the pants leaving the rest of his toned bronze flesh exposed. His broad chest had several symbols painted on it in gold paint, black smudges that looked like charcoal and a brownish-red that Sera suspected was blood. She had no notion what any of them might be.

Currently, the shaman busied himself with grinding bones and mixing them with herbs. He was ignorant to the two pitiful figures that kept glancing at him and shuddering. Sera looked to them wondering if she could free them for assistance. They were little more than skin and bone, a man and a woman who had odd markings carved and burned into their flesh. The man was missing two toes and the woman two fingers. Sera knew they could offer little in the way of strength but she considered they might present a good distraction. Their bonds were rusty and looked weak, they couldn't break them but she was willing to wager she could pick the lock that held them quick enough.

The blonde did another scan of the cavern to be sure it was her best option. She winced to see that Aldrin and his friends were unfastening Lucien's chains from the wall. They were going to move him. Well it was now or never then, time to catch them out while they were occupied. If nothing else maybe Lucien could catch them in a moment of vulnerability and help but Sera wasn't so sure, he didn't look to be in good condition.

The blonde kept to the shadows as she carefully moved round the alchemy station to the prisoners. She worked fast and quietly. The pair were so caught up in their terror of the shaman that they didn't even notice Sera picking their lock free until their cuffs slipped away.

The shaman paused at the noise of chains falling to the ground and looked their way. He spied Sera too late and couldn't move in time to avoid the dagger which stuck him square in the right eye.

"RUN!" Sera shouted an order to the prisoners and to her great relief they listened.

As the shaman fell backwards with a scream of agony the male and female scrambled to their feet and ran madly. Three pairs of eyes looked to them and missed Sera, now back in the shadows and moving towards Lucien and the others stealthily.

When she got closer Sera sprang with her second dagger and cut a wound so deep through the robed woman's throat she almost severed her head from her body. The blood sprayed across the blonde's face as the woman fell to the ground with a strangled gurgle, one hand reaching feebly to the bloody wound.

Aldrin looked at Sera in surprise before his eyes narrowed in recognition. He gave the woman an ugly smile as he tugged out a flail. "Ah Tsafkaerb, it was a pity to miss out on you," he mocked her.

Sera gave a scream of surprise when Aldrin's male companion attacked her with magic. She fell to the ground as a lightning attack shook through her body, burning it inside as it made her limbs shake against her will. There she had thought she would only have one mage to contend with.

"Who is this Nirdla?" the male queried as he looked at the shaking female with interest.

Aldrin grinned down at Sera. "Formerly Tsafkaerb but now I think she is Lady Tressed."

The horrible name sent a pang of revulsion and anger through Sera snapping her out of her pain. She looked up and saw Aldrin's sneer and then she saw red.

Aldrin was startled when Sera suddenly made it upright to her feet and came for him like a wild animal, short sword raised as she screamed. He swung the flail too late, it struck her left shoulder with a sickening crack, spikes drawing blood as the blow was enough to dislocate it. The short sword was in her right hand however and it struck true.

Aldrin's eyes tried and failed to look to the blade now embedded in his forehead as it sank further and further in as the weight of the blonde carried it and him backwards. When he hit the ground he was dead.

Sera had no time to feel relief or joy before the electric attacks came. Over and over in quick succession she was shocked as the last of the cannibals attacked her in a fury.

It stopped when Lucien slipped his chains over the man's throat and began to strangle him. He wrapped the chains about the man's neck tightly and dragged him to the ground with his weight. His grasp never loosened until the man went still. Even then Lucien waited a few precious seconds more before he unwrapped the bonds. He freed himself of them then and moved as quickly as he could to the fallen blonde.

Sera lay in a pool of her own blood, eyes closed, flesh charred and body twitching. Lucien swallowed down a curse as he realised how severe her injuries were. He wondered at his options as he looked about the cave anxiously. There were no potions here only poisons. He reached a hand down to her neck and pressed two fingers to her pulse, it was still there but it was faint. He thought about their location and wondered how long she might last.

"I hope you brought a horse," he grumbled to her. He turned to the fallen mage with an ugly look before robbing him of his robes and dignity. Dressed, he returned his attention to the fallen Sera and with several curses he scooped her up though it took everything in him to stay standing with her. If he could only make it back to Skingrad she might have a chance.